A conventional security system integrates a number of sensors or detectors for detecting an intrusion within protected premises, such as a home or place of business, with a control system for interpreting the sensor or detectors signals for the purposes of generating an alarm. The control system for small security systems typically has a single control panel and a single keypad. The control panel is connected by wire or wirelessly to all sensors or detectors, and has control over alarm generation whether by local siren or by telecommunications, such as telephone network or cable network. The control panel is also connected to the keypad that serves as the user interface within the protected premises for arming and disarming the security system, and for programming or configuring the security system.
Most security systems today allow for the user to enter a code at the keypad to arm the security system, and either the same or a different code to disarm the security system. The keypad is safely located within the protected premises, and for those detectors that would detect an entry or exit, there is a timer used to delay the action of alarm generation from the time that a sensor or a detector generates an intrusion signal. This timer may be set to about 15 to 60 seconds, and allows for entry and exit by a user.
In many systems, the keypad can also be used for programming or setting features, such as which sensors or detectors, identified as zones within the protected premises, are to be activated or deactivated. This is done commonly by using the keypad, and in many systems, the user enters a special security code at the keypad to enter a programming or setting mode.
Another common feature that can be programmed or set using the keypad is the stay mode. Stay mode is an armed mode where the premises is protected from intruding while staying at the premises. At this mode of operation, the detection of sensors and detectors within the protected premises is ignored, such as passive infrared motion detectors, Doppler shift microwave intrusion detectors, inside passage door sensors and floor load cell sensors. Only sensors and detectors that essentially monitor entry or egress remain activated. The stay mode is configured typically by entering the programming mode and selecting zones to be deactivated in the stay mode. The stay mode is turned on and off (namely to be in the away mode) by entering a security code and selecting the stay or away mode. The stay mode protects the perimeter of the premises and is very important in areas where there is a threat of intrusion while an occupant remains within the premises.
Such conventional security systems are vulnerable to intruders who are able to monitor the premises from outside and enter the premises at the moment when an occupant leaves or enters and other occupants remain within the premises with the security system armed in the stay mode. The timer used to allow exit or entry causes one or more zones of the security system to be by-passed during the timed period, and this may allow not only the occupant to leave or enter without generating an alarm but also the intruder. Once within the premises, the stay mode will allow the intruder to move about without generating an alarm. Because an occupant may be able to call 911 or use a panic button of the security system to generate an alarm, such intruders are likely to use violence to subdue any occupants remaining within the premises. While an alarm may later be generated after the intruder leaves the premises, this is often a minor concern to the intruder and the alarm is simply too late. When a user enters a regular system, there is an entry delay, where the user punches his or her code or else an alarm will be generated when the delay expires. When the code is entered, the system is fully disarmed. At this moment, and until the system is re-armed into the stay mode all premises are unprotected. This involves a two-step process, namely the entering of a code to disarm the system, and then subsequently a code to re-arm the system. This delay to enter two subsequent codes can be sufficient time for an intruder to take advantage of the full disarming of the system. An intruder that learns occupant habits can wait till someone leave or enter the premises, and during the entry/exit operation can enter the premises via any zone.